Following in the steps of the "Hunger Games" and "Harry Potter" - Lionsgate/Summit Entertainment announced on Friday that the final book in the "Divergent" series will be split into two movies, Deadline reported.
Based on the Veronica Roth's "Divergent" trilogy, the first movie starring Shailene Woodley and Theo James hit theaters on March 21 with a $54 million opening weekend in the U.S. It has collectively made $117 million domestically in three weeks and another $22 million from international markets
The final chapter will be released in two parts: "Allegiant - Part 1," scheduled to be released on March 18, 2016, and "Allegiant - Part 2" on March 24, 2017. Lionsgate had previously set Allegiant for a March 18, 2016 release.
"[Author] Veronica Roth brings her captivating story to a masterful conclusion in Allegiant, a rich, action-packed book with material that is ideally suited to two strong and fulfilling movies," Rob Friedman and Patrick Wachsberger, Lionsgate Motion Picture Group co-chairmen said in a statement. "The storytelling arc and world of the characters lend themselves perfectly to two films, a storytelling strategy that has worked very well for us on the two Twilight Breaking Dawn films and about which we're tremendously enthusiastic for the two upcoming Mockingjay films of The Hunger Games franchise."
"Divergent" takes place in a futuristic Chicago and "focuses on a post-apocalyptic world divided into factions." The story focuses on Tris, a 16-year-old girl who finds herself in danger after discovering she does not fit into one particular faction.
The first film in the franchise was directed by Neil Burger and also starred Kate Winslet, Ashley Judd, Zoë Kravitz, Miles Teller, Mekhi Phifer, Tony Goldwyn, and Maggie Q. Several of the actors will reprise their roles in the final chapters. The next chapters will be directed by "Red" director Robert Schwentke.
